Episode 225

She led Zeke and Bill to a place within the camp that connected to the sea.

Peter Pan turned to Zeke and asked, “How long can you hold your breath underwater?”

Before Zeke could answer, Bill chimed in, “Captain! This knight here is a great swimmer! We swam together for quite a while earlier.”

“Bill! I told you to stop using that dialect! It makes humans underestimate us!” she scolded, though there was a hint of amusement in her voice. Then, without hesitation, she dove into the water and instructed Bill, “Bill, take the others and hide. We can’t afford to get caught again. I’ll come for you soon.”

“Understood, Captain,” Bill replied.

Peter Pan gestured to Zeke from the water. “What are you waiting for? Hurry up, we don’t have much time.”

Zeke nodded and plunged into the water. As soon as he was submerged, he activated his underwater breathing ability, allowing him to breathe freely.

With his newfound ability, Zeke could clearly see Peter Pan swimming ahead. Her legs had transformed into a shimmering fish tail, a stark contrast to the human legs she had moments ago.

She communicated with him through the vibrations in the water, her voice resonating clearly, “Follow me this way.”

Zeke followed her into a cave where the sea current was strong. ‘Another lava cave, perhaps? The current is swift,’ he thought, increasing his weight with his power and using his dragon wings to swim more effectively.

After navigating the narrow, winding cave, they emerged into a vast open space. Beneath the sea, remnants of structures, less damaged than before, came into view.

Zeke realized this wasn’t a temple. ‘This must have been a city where the deep-sea tribe lived,’ he mused, understanding it was an underwater civilization built by the deep-sea people.

He recalled how the sanctuary of the sky tribe was hidden deeper within their own living quarters. ‘Could the Sea God’s temple be hidden even deeper here?’

Peter Pan gestured for Zeke to surface, and he followed her up.

“Ah!” Zeke gasped as he broke the surface, taking a deep breath. He turned to see the long lava cave stretching behind them.

Peter Pan, who had transformed back to her human form, stood beside him. Zeke remarked, “Fascinating. Can all deep-sea people move between land and sea like that?”

Peter Pan shook her head. “No, only the descendants of the Sea God can do that.”

“The Sea God’s descendants?” Zeke inquired, but Peter Pan simply motioned for him to follow.

As they ventured further into the cave, Zeke sensed something amiss. He signaled Peter Pan to stop and summoned his ghost soldiers.

With a soft hiss, two ghostly figures emerged from Zeke’s shadow, startling Peter Pan. The ghost soldiers, invisible in their ethereal form, moved ahead to scout the cave.

Zeke shared their vision, keeping a close watch. Soon, he spotted demons patrolling the area. Upon closer inspection, he noticed not only demons but also mages among them.

One of the mages suddenly turned towards the ethereal ghost soldiers, as if sensing their presence. “Intruders!” he shouted, drawing his staff and casting a spell that forced the ghost soldiers to materialize.

The demons charged at the now-visible ghost soldiers. Zeke ordered them to retreat and dismissed the summons. ‘They can detect ethereal forms. These must be abyssal mages,’ he thought, realizing the need for caution when sending scouts into the abyss.

Zeke quickly assessed the situation and turned to Peter Pan. “There’s a dark mage and a knight wielding dark energy ahead. Can you use your spirit magic to stop them?”

Peter Pan frowned. “That dark energy, it’s that sticky, black aura, right? Spirits hate it.”

Spirits, being pure entities from another dimension, were naturally opposed to the dark energy of the abyss.

“Can you manage if we block the dark energy?” Zeke asked.

“Possibly, but…” she hesitated.

Just then, the dark mage and demons appeared, having followed the ghost soldiers’ trail.

“There they are! Capture them!” the mage commanded.

Zeke sheathed Bahamut and drew his jewel-encrusted sword, Roland, casting a barrier of light.

A radiant shield expanded from Zeke, enveloping them both. Peter Pan looked surprised as the light washed over her. “What is this? It feels so warm.”

“Can you use your spirits now?” Zeke asked.

Above her, the water spirit Undine fluttered its wings energetically. Peter Pan nodded, conjuring water droplets that quickly expanded into towering columns of water, surging towards the oncoming demons.

The water columns, as if alive, engulfed the demons, sweeping them away despite their attempts to resist.

Zeke watched Peter Pan’s spirit magic in awe. ‘Unlike elemental sword techniques, spirit magic harnesses the raw power of nature,’ he thought, considering new ways to use his own elemental fields.

As they prepared to advance, a dark-robed mage emerged through the water columns, shrouded in a black barrier.

The mage pointed his staff at Peter Pan. “You treacherous merfolk! How dare you betray us!”

Black lightning crackled from his staff, striking towards Peter Pan. The lightning, amplified by the seawater, spread across the cave walls, threatening to engulf them both.

Zeke charged forward, brandishing Roland. As he summoned his holy weapon, a brilliant light erupted from the sword.

With a swift motion, Zeke’s sword cleaved through the black lightning, dispelling it entirely.

The abyssal mage, stunned, stammered, “Lu-Luvern’s light magic? How…?”

Realizing who he faced, the mage’s eyes widened in recognition. “You… you’re Zeke Draker!”

Zeke flew towards the mage, his sword blazing with holy light.

The light wrapped around the mage, burning away the dark aura surrounding him.

The mage gritted his teeth, aiming his staff at Zeke. “Zeke Draker! You’ve walked right into my trap! Offering you up will earn me the baptism and make me an apostle!”

Greed replaced the mage’s initial shock as black smoke billowed from his staff, coalescing into a monstrous form.

A massive creature with a solid body, grotesque wings, and two horns emerged. Peter Pan gasped at the sight. “Is that… a demon?”

Even she slipped into her dialect in shock. Zeke, however, was surprised for a different reason. ‘Isn’t that a Balrog?’

He hadn’t expected to encounter a Balrog here, reminiscent of the one he faced in the inverted tower.

The abyssal mage, seeing their reactions, smirked confidently. “No creature in this realm can withstand a Balrog, a warrior of the demon realm! Prepare to meet a terrifying end!”

As the mage swung his staff, the Balrog roared, its red eyes glowing fiercely.

The cave trembled with its roar, causing Undine to retreat to the spirit realm and leaving Peter Pan pale with fear.

Yet Zeke remained unfazed, calmly assessing the Balrog. ‘Its roar is weaker than the Butcher’s or the Tyrant’s. Those felt like they pierced my very bones.’

The mage mistook Zeke’s calm demeanor for fear. “Go! Crush him completely!”

The Balrog charged at Zeke, its massive form barreling forward.

Zeke watched the Balrog for a moment, then planted Roland into the ground and charged forward with his bare hands.

Peter Pan was taken aback by the sight.

“What… what are you doing?!”

Zeke assumed the Infinite Chain Stance and summoned the power of the Resonating Force.

A guttural roar echoed as the Balrog lunged at Zeke.

Zeke stepped forward with a swift movement, unleashing a wave of Resonating Force.

Boom!

The Balrog crossed its arms, using its immense strength to break through Zeke’s wave.

But Zeke had already moved into the Balrog’s blind spot, stepping lightly as if on air.

The Balrog swung its claws at Zeke, but he was no longer there.

Instead, he appeared at its side, launching a powerful kick.

Thud!

Zeke’s kick struck the Balrog’s flank with explosive force.

The massive creature staggered sideways from the impact.

Zeke didn’t stop there. He activated the Infinite Chain Stance once more.

Infinite Chain Stance

Continuous Strikes

Four-Directional Attack

Zeke’s blows, infused with the power of the Resonating Force, targeted the Balrog’s vulnerabilities.

The Balrog, overwhelmed by Zeke’s relentless assault, could do nothing but defend.

In the midst of his continuous attack, Zeke suddenly leaped into the air.

Whoosh!

Spinning his body, he aimed a knife-hand strike at the Balrog’s horn, its weak point.

Infinite Chain Stance

Spinning Strike

Knife-Hand Slash

Zeke’s hand sliced through the Balrog’s tough horn in an instant.

The Balrog roared in agony, retreating as it lost its horn to Zeke.

But Zeke wasn’t finished.

He raised his hand, channeling the power of the Sacred Flame.

With the Sacred Flame’s energy coursing through him, Zeke unleashed the Infinite Chain Stance once more.

His hand, glowing with light, pierced the Balrog’s chest.

Crack!

The Sacred Flame’s power caused fine cracks to spread across the Balrog’s body. Then, its form shattered, disintegrating into black ash.

Zeke swiftly dispatched the Balrog and picked up its fallen horn, turning to the dark sorcerer.

“A Balrog, huh? Quite the interesting summon.”

He stowed the horn in his inventory and slowly approached the sorcerer.

To the sorcerer, Zeke seemed less like a man and more like a monster, having defeated the Balrog with his bare hands.

“A… a monster…”

The sorcerer tried to flee, but Zeke was faster.

He had already summoned Shadow Dominion, binding the sorcerer’s shadow in place.

“Ugh!”

Zeke held the sorcerer captive, reading his memories through the shadow.

“Hmm, let’s see. It seems you haven’t found Sister Kali yet.”

It appeared they were pursuing Kali, who had fled somewhere in the ruins after being injured.

Zeke addressed the sorcerer.

“How did you discover the ethereal form?”

Unable to discern this from the memories, Zeke used his blood eye to question the sorcerer, whose eye suddenly turned red.

Seeing the red eye, Zeke extracted the sorcerer’s information.

“A demon eye… So it can see souls. Different from a spirit eye. This could be troublesome.”

As Zeke extracted information from the sorcerer, a loud noise erupted from deeper within the cave.

Clang!

The sound of swords clashing.

Zeke snapped the sorcerer’s neck, killing him instantly.

Then, using the power of Decay, he dissolved the sorcerer’s body completely.

Peter Pan watched Zeke, feeling conflicted.

‘He seemed like a knight sent by the gods earlier, but now he looks like a merciless demon.’

Unaware of Peter Pan’s thoughts, Zeke turned to him.

“There’s a battle going on over there. Follow me.”

With that, Zeke launched himself forward.

Using his flight technique, he swiftly reached the inner part of the lava cave.

Boom!

Inside, a fierce battle was underway.

Knights clad in Hersion armor were swinging their swords, attacking someone.

Zeke quickly identified the person under attack by the knights.

“Sister Kali!”

There was Kali Draker, wounded but still wielding her sword.